Malice (Dahlia Saga Book 1)

by Natalie Bennett

  His hand disappeared underneath, he began to rub me through the fabric of my lace underwear.

  "We can't," I whispered.

  “I can do whatever I want. We've been doing this dance for far too long, and I'm not waiting any longer." He rubbed his thumb up and down my slit, circling my clit and torturing me with promised pleasure.

  "You're already dripping wet," he mumbled against my mouth before pulling his hand away. I blinked a few times, looking up into his green eyes. "Why can't you just admit you want me?" He pressed his forehead to mine once more.

  I remained quiet, breathing in the scent of him. I wanted him, badly. But those three words held more weight than I would admit, and far more leverage than I was willing to give him.

  He stepped away, taking his body heat with him and easily recomposed himself, offering me a hand when he was done. I accepted it, wondering if he could feel the racing of my pulse.

  The air was warm, and the sky was filled with tiny stars, setting a delightful ambiance.

  It was surprisingly sweet.

  Julian sipped on his drink of choice while I opted for water. We sat in silence for the most part, enjoying the serene view from the hotel balcony.

  I decided to speak up first, wanting him to know I wasn’t normally the type of person who would allow themselves to be felt up in a hallway before the date even began. If that’s what this was.

  "Um...I know this is cliché, but I don't usually do what we did out there."

  A boyish grin spread across his face, causing mine to heat.

  "I know that. I plan to be lots of firsts and lasts."

  Skipping over the finality of the word lasts, I shook my head at him and focused on my meal.

  "You don't drink?" He broke the second bout of elapsed silence with a question I was sure he already knew the answer to.

  "I'm not supposed to drink. Alcohol mixed with my meds can exacerbate my...problems."

  "You don't have any problems; you're unique."

  "I don't want to talk about this with you." Instantly frustrated, I pushed my plate away. He stared for an uncomfortably long amount of time. Unable to maintain eye contact, my gaze went everywhere but to his.

  "You don't have to hide it with me."

  "I don't like to talk about the fucked-up shit in my head. And thank you for the flowers, but please don't do that again."

  "Stop." The sharp tone he applied had my gaze snapping back to his.

  "Stop...what?" I questioned slowly.

  "You’re deflecting. I don't care what's in your head. If I want to send you flowers, I will. And the fucking pills you're on don't help you. They're stopping you from being who you really are."

  I gaped before fixing him with an icy glare. "Those pills keep me from cutting my wrists open."

  "Speaking of, I went in your room and looked around before you got home last night. I saw the cutting knife. Why do you think I texted you the exact moment you were going to cut somewhere only I'm permitted to touch?"

  "You-you went in my room? You don’t have a right to do that. I’m not your property!"

  "I had to make sure you were safe. A thank you will suffice."

  Now who was deflecting? I leaned back in my chair and stared at him. The candle on our table had shadows dancing across his face. He looked just as he always did. Wearing a dark suit sans tie, immaculately put together, and meticulously groomed. Something about the dark made him that much more attractive.

  I waited for negative emotion to bud, but no heated embarrassment rushed to my face. Anger didn't make my vision go red. It was evident how little it bothered me that this man knew my secrets.

  Staring down at my red potatoes, I no longer had an appetite. I wasn’t upset, but food was the last thing on my mind. This dinner had derailed the second a chauffeur showed up to pick me up, going beyond what I expected when I kissed him back.

  "I don’t know what to say right now.”

  "Nothing. There isn’t anything you can say that will change things. Sooner than later you’ll learn that I know you better than you know yourself."

  “Isn’t this all a little much for a simple dinner?”

  “Dollface, you always knew this was so much more than just dinner.”

  My cheeks warmed under his watchful eye.

  "You're cute," he added, looking at me with a skewed smirk on his face.

  Cute? I wrinkled my nose. The tension between us evaporated into thin air. Ugh, I did not want to be that girl. The one that melted at his feet, but he wasn't making it easy. I needed a buffer.

  "So, what did I do that made you so interested all of a sudden?"

  "You existed."

  I bit my lower lip to try to stifle my laughter. Julian watched me with a bemused expression on his face.

  "That's it?" I swirled my ice cubes around in my water, glancing up at him.

  "I don't have a flowery explanation for you. I saw you, I liked what I saw, and I knew I had to have you."

  His cocky arrogance had me partially turned on and somewhat impressed with how bold he was.

  “And now?”

  He gave me the cockiest smile known to man, showing me the dimples, I was quickly coming to adore. “I was going to take you inside and fuck your brains out. You’re not quite ready for that yet. "So, do you still want to drive the car?"

  Chapter Seven

  His car seemed ten times bigger behind the wheel. Julian gave me zero instruction on what to do. He drove to a long rural back road, (easy to find in Riverview) got out, and had us switch seats. Gripping the steering wheel as if my life depended on it, I turned the high beams on, going as fast as I dared.

  The rumbling of the engine reverberated through my seat, making the ache between my legs ten times worse.

  Julian leaned across the middle console and placed his hand was between my thighs, fingertips barely touching my pussy.

  When he started to rub my clit, I jerked, angling the powerful car to the right. He laughed, a deep throaty sound as I momentarily panicked, hurriedly getting the car back on the straight and narrow.

  “You’re going to make me crash.”

  "There’s nothing but empty road out here for miles. Go faster," he whispered, biting down on my lobe. My underwear was pulled to the side and replaced with deft fingers stroking up and down my folds.

  I swallowed a moan and gently accelerated. The sleek, powerful machine purred down the back road with ease, gaining speed. I had never driven so fast before. That, coupled with his fingers between my thighs pushing me to climax, was exhilarating.

  He eased one digit inside of me, using another to tease my clit. I spread my legs, feeling a warm gush of fluid as my arousal built.

  “Pull over,” he rasped when my concentration waned, and I began to ease off the gas.

  Slowing down as fast as possible, I pulled to the shoulder of the road and clicked off the high beams. He removed his hand from between my legs and climbed out of the car without a word, slamming his door behind him.

  Slightly confused, I undid my seat belt and reached for the door handle, torn away a second later when he yanked it open from the outside.

  "Out,” he demanded.

  On auto-response, I did as he said and climbed from the car on shaky legs. The ache between my thighs was stronger than before. With one hand, he pushed the door shut, and used the other to take hold of me, going to the front of the car.

  “Take your underwear off.”

  I quickly slid my panties down my leg and placed them in his open palm. He glanced down at the black thong, and then back up.

  "Morgana." His voice was a mixture of amusement and desire. “I think you’re ready now.”

  I’d been ready the day we met. I think that’s what made things so much more between us. He was right, we’d been doing this dance for far too long. I was a mess of a woman on my good days, but I needed this. I wanted him.

  I nodded, and his reaction was instantaneous. I was backed up and placed on the hood of his
car. We didn't speak anymore words, but none were needed. His mouth covered mine, his hands went to my hips.

  I reached between us and unzipped his slacks before spreading myself for him, giving a full view of my naked sex.

  “Beautiful,” he murmured. He pulled his hardened cock out, lined himself up, and shoved inside me with one fluid motion. The size of him had my brain shorting out. He stretched me in a painfully delicious way, the rough intrusion causing my walls to spasm. A soft hiss that could barely be heard over me crying out passed through his lips.

  There wasn’t anything gentle about what transpired. I was wetter than I’d ever been as he set a brutal pace. My juices drenched his cock and flowed down to the hood of his car.

  “Fuck, your pussy is everything I thought it’d be,” he intoned, lifting my legs up over his forearms. His slacks hung loosely beneath his ass; suit jacket still secured up top. All I could see in the glow of headlights was his glistening cock and rounded globes.

  Someone could drive down the road at any minute and see exactly what we were doing. That didn’t stop us. Nothing had ever felt this good, not even the blade that split flesh. My moans grew in volume, matching the force of his thrusts. I fisted his shirt in a desperate attempt to hold onto something when my nails scraped over smooth metal.

  Without warning, he wrapped one of his hands around my throat and pinned me down, squeezing so tightly, and fucking me so hard tears ran from my eyes. This was the kind of pain I welcomed. Pressure built in my core; my pussy began to contract.

  “Jules,” I gasped his name, barely able to speak.

  With ragged restricted breathing and his hard, thick cock driving into me. I came with a mangled scream and a dizzying head rush.

  Julian picked up his pace, cutting off my airway, fucking me harder. The car steadily rocked back and forth. The warm metal rubbed my ass raw, heat emanating beneath the dark cherry hood from the soft rumbling engine. My pants and cries reverberated around us in the empty night sky as our skin slapped together.

  When he finally came, he released a terse curse and buried his cock all the way inside me, slowly rolling his hips as my pussy milked his cock for everything it had.

  His hand left my throat and braced on one side of my body. Still trying to catch my breath, I lazily reached up and cupped his face.

  "You are most definitely mine," he murmured softly against my lips. In the heat of the moment, those words warmed me to the core. I knew he meant them.

  And that dark promise would lead us straight to the end of a beginning.

  Chapter Eight

  The lake looked like a silver mirror beneath the brilliant setting sun. There was a slight breeze to offset the mid-August heat, and birds chirped from the tall trees that ran around the water’s edge.

  I lounged in one of the chairs my Dad had placed near the dock, pretending to bask in the peacefulness. I loved the summer sunlight, the clouds, birds, and trees, but I could feel that ugly veil of darkness making its return. It always happened randomly. I could be soaring high one minute and crashing the next.

  My book lay downturned on my lap, barely holding my interest. It took all my self-control not to check my phone again. Though it had only been a mere two and a half weeks, I was growing accustomed to Julian’s sporadic texts and pop-ups.

  He always texted me in the morning and the evening, beyond that it was fifty-fifty if I’d hear from him. Looking back on the night he let me drive his car, I sometimes found it hard to believe that uninhibited girl was me.

  I’d never done anything like that in my life. I found myself smiling every time I thought about it. Really, whenever I thought about Julian in general, which was about one hundred times a day. This wasn’t healthy, falling for someone so fast, but I couldn’t stop it. Honestly, I feared how quickly things were moving.

  Julian made me feel things I never had. He was becoming as necessary as the pills I took to keep me stable. And I think he knew it because there were little pieces of his true nature slowly starting to reveal themselves.

  Sensing a presence coming up behind me I peeked over my shoulder. Sure enough, it was him. Wearing only a button up shirt and slacks, hair perfectly styled as usual, he made his way down the long drive to the area I was sitting.

  “How long have you been out here?” he asked, taking the chair beside mine.

  “Not long. Maybe an hour.”

  He nodded and looked out at the water. I breathed in his comforting scent and waited for him to tell me about his day, work, anything. Of course, he never did. This hadn’t bothered me much until three days ago when I realized I’d never been past the foyer inside his house.

  Maybe I was overreacting, but the Chateau Dahlia was nearly a legend around Riverview. It was a gorgeous, massive property that had been around for decades as far as I knew. He tended to take me everywhere but there. Thus far we’d fucked in two of his cars, the hotel, and even my bed once. That coupled with his random times of contact made me feel like a dirty secret.

  “What is it?” he asked suddenly.

  I startled, snapping back to attention. “What is what?”

  “You’re lost in your head. Something’s bothering you. What is it?”

  The assessment was delivered with a clinical undertone, one I didn’t care for whatsoever. I angled my body away from him, staring out at the lake like he was.

  “Would you even care?” I questioned with more irritability than I intended.

  “Hey.” He reached out and took hold of my jaw, forcing my head to turn back towards him. Tired olive clashed with electrified green, and it felt as if he saw right through me. “I think you should come stay with me.”

  What? Lashes fluttered in disbelief. A swift rush of anger flowed through my veins. “Why? To hide me away in that big house of yours?”

  He laughed lowly under his breath, giving a slight shake of his head. “Ah, I get it now.”

  Well, that was nice to know because I didn’t. My irritation doubled, and I pulled my chin from his grip, just for him to move from his chair and crouch in front of mine.

  He clasped both of my hands within his so tightly I had to smother a grimace. “I’d never hide you away Dollface, I’ve been trying to keep you safe.”

  “Keep me safe from what?”

  “Me.”

  Irritation was diluted by wariness. I stared at the beautiful man kneeling in front of me with no idea how to respond to that. All the rumors about his family sizzled in my brain. I found myself gnawing the inside of my cheek. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth as the wound from last week was reopened.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Oh, but you do.”

  His phone began to ring, the chimes causing him to release my hands. I flexed them, watching on as he looked at the screen and silenced the call. When his gaze returned to mine, I already knew he was going to say he had to leave.

  “Things will change soon when you come stay with me.” He ran a thumb over my knee, and then stood up.

  “I never agreed to that.”

  “It wasn’t an option.” He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my lips. “I’ll pick you up for dinner on Tuesday, we’ll talk more then.”

  Tuesday? It was only Thursday. I twisted in my lounge chair and watched him stride back up the drive to where his Mercedes was parked, phone now at his ear. He was so secretive and delusive it made me want to pull my fucking hair out and scream.

  I was still staring long after he pulled out. My mind harped on whatever it was I should have understood. Nothing came to mind. Not unless he was telling me the rumors were true. But why would he do that? I wasn’t even entirely sure what the extent of those were. However, I knew someone who did.

  Going into my contacts, I knew this wasn’t the best idea but if I didn’t get clarification, I would obsess over this for days on end until I saw him again. Hitting call on Tony’s name sealed the decision for me.

  He picked up on the second ring. An hour and ten min
utes later I knew more about Julian’s family than I wanted to.

  Thing’s that would make me question everything if they were true. When we hung up, I had a war raging in my mind. Did I willingly stay with a man whose demons lurked in his eyes, or did I run away in the hope that he wouldn't make good on his promise to catch me?

  Chapter Nine

  The only time he ever hurt me was during sex, and that was when I needed it.

  He sent me flowers. Had curled up in bed and watched cheesy movies with me. His disposition never changed when my moodiness caused mine to switch at random intervals. When he looked at me it wasn’t with pity or repulsion. I saw the adoration even when he’d go cold.

  There was no way he could be the man Tony claimed he was. Yet, I knew I needed to get out while I could.

  It was time to take a step back and try to think this through more clearly before I got anymore attached. It hadn’t been an easy decision to come to. Julian was all my perfects in one gorgeous man. I had fallen fast and hard, was still falling even now.

  As I sat across from him with my stomach in knots, I loathed what I was about to do. Julian watched me with a predatory regard. It was almost like he knew what I was going to say and was simply waiting for it. If the skewed smirk on his face and wicked gleam in his eye were anything to go by, then he was amused by the whole thing.

  My phone began to vibrate inside my clutch, a much-needed distraction. I fumbled to get it out wishing I hadn’t as soon as I saw the name flashing across the screen.

  Tony.

  I knew he why he was calling. Suddenly, picking up the phone seemed like a chiefly bad idea.

  “Go ahead. Answer it." They were calmly spoken words, but I knew better.

  "It okay, he can wait."

  "Why? Do you have something to hide?”

  He took my cell from my hand and answered it. Placing it on speaker, he winked and stood up, setting the phone down in front of me before going inside. We were at the same hotel we always came to, so any sense of privacy was illusion.